


Brooklyn Steve Rogers and the Golden Idol

by Neverever



Series: Cap-IM Tiny Reverse Bang ficlets [1]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1930s, Alternate Universe - Indiana Jones, Archaeology, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-27
Updated: 2015-07-27
Packaged: 2018-04-11 10:48:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4432670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neverever/pseuds/Neverever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Archaelogist Steve Rogers uncovers an artifact with meaning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brooklyn Steve Rogers and the Golden Idol

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the first round (assemble) of the Cap/Iron Man Tiny Reverse Big Bang.
> 
> Art is by [tinctoriawoad](http://tinctoriawoad.tumblr.com) and is titled: [Like Nothing You’ve Ever Gone After Before](http://capim-tinybang.tumblr.com/post/122629974013/title-like-nothing-youve-ever-gone-after-before). Check it out!

Brooklyn Steve Rogers tipped back his battered fedora as he stared up at the temple. He had researched, planned, and made a long, hard journey through the dense green Amazonian jungle to find this place. He knew in his gut that somewhere in the depths of this weatherworn, vine-covered temple a fabled idol had been hidden. And Brooklyn Steve aimed to find it.

The locals told fantastical stories about the unknown idol. They told of how men and women went mad or dropped dead at the sight of it, a gift from a hostile god. They still shivered in fear, though the temple and its idol had not been seen for centuries. They liked Brooklyn Steve, given his deep interest in their history and the respect he showed their culture. They warned him, gently at first, and even now, at the temple, his guide begged him to turn back.

Taking a deep breath, Steve forged ahead into the depths of the musty temple. He hacked through thick, twisted vines with his machete. He lit a torch to light his way through booby-trapped and spider-webbed hallways. He carefully made his way towards the center of the temple. He ran a finger over dusty walls and lost writing, no doubt warning off strangers. After what felt like hours, he reached a barricaded door. Strange, because it was barricaded on Steve’s side, as if whatever was on the other side was far more dangerous than a temple robber.

“Senhor Rogers, we must leave,” his guide insisted. “Our legends tell us that no one has gone through that door and lived.”

Steve knew someone who didn’t believe in any of those legends. Back in New York, clad in a borrowed tuxedo, he had listened to his fellow explorer Tony Stark scoff over gin and tonics at the legends and folk history Steve had uncovered. He could still see Tony sprawled in his leather chair, his tuxedo bowtie untied and the top two buttons of his shirt undone. God, Stark was a gorgeous man with beautiful eyes that brimmed with excitement. Steve had been in awe of his lectures on deep sea and arctic explorations with the lantern slides of Tony in a strange iron suit.

He remembered as if it had happened yesterday that early morning visit from Tony. Steve had been packed and ready to go for hours, catching a ship out of the New York harbor that would take him down to Brazil and his destiny. He thought Tony was there to see him off; but, unexpectedly, a downcast Tony asked him to stay longer, to wait until Tony left for his own trip to Antarctica.

Steve put his hand on the door, and had a brief regret that he might not see Tony again. Or hear his rich laughter as Steve told him stories about the ocean voyage. But he was an explorer through and through, and he was determined to get to the bottom of the legends.

As soon as he was through the door, his guide deciding it was wise to remain behind, Steve saw something glowing on a pedestal in the middle of the high-ceilinged chamber. He lifted the torch but saw no traps, as if the temple builders had decided that anyone in that room had sealed their doom by being there in the first place. He gingerly made his way over to the stone pedestal.

He bent down to look at the object on the pedestal. At first he couldn’t tell what it was, only that it gave off a steady, bright light and seemed to made of gold. Then his eyes focused and he saw, as plain as day, a gold sculpture of Tony in one of his iron suits. A thunderous shiver ran through Steve’s body as he understood the power of the idol and why it was hidden away for so many years.

He backed away from the gold idol, turned around, and walked right to the entrance of the temple, his guide struggling to keep up.

Steve didn’t speak to anyone about what he had seen until his guide asked him on their river voyage to the coast. Steve stared out over the running water and pondered what to say. He gave the guide a rueful smile. “The idol shows you what you most want in the whole world.”

The guide tilted his head. “How is that bad, senhor?”

Steve thought about his long-term friendship with his fellow explorer, Tony. Quickly, he calculated how long Tony would be in Antarctica and when he himself would arrive in New York again. He knew he would track Tony down wherever he was to get his answer, the one he saw in the temple.

“Maybe it’s not. But I’m not sure knowing what you want is entirely safe either.”

“Ah,” the guide said. “One must be wise and strong of heart to know what to do with that knowledge.”

Brooklyn Steve lifted his head and looked in the direction of the coast. “Well, I aim to find out when I get home.”

 

Badge art by Inoshi.


End file.
